As wireless networks evolve, the demand for high-quality service to a growing number of wireless devices or users increases. Multiple input multiple output (MIMO) is a transmission mode that has been developed to help meet this demand. MIMO is a method for increasing the data throughputs and reliability of a transmission using multiple transmitting and receiving antennas by exploiting multipath propagation. The method includes sending more than one data signal simultaneously using the same resource from multiple antennas of an access node and a wireless device receiving the data signal with multiple antennas. While MIMO increases the data throughputs and reliability of signal transmission to wireless device, it also increases the power consumption of wireless device when sending and receiving data. Power consumption of the wireless device increases since the wireless device needs to receive and decode the signal on multiple paths. Accordingly, wireless device batteries drain faster when communicating via high order MIMO transmissions as compared to low order MIMO transmissions.